Mongolia tours with free WiFi during your trip – leave it to a local specialist travel company.　

For first-timers and repeat visitors

Here are 16 hints to help you answer "What should I do on my trip to Mongolia?"

1. Be thrilled by the fierce contests of a proud horse-riding people

Naadam is a summer festival held across Mongolia from late June through August. The main events are wrestling, horse racing and archery, and the whole country is swept up in fierce competition. The national festival, the "State Great Naadam," is held every year on July 11–13 at the Central Stadium in Ulaanbaatar.

2. Trek on horseback, the nomads' best friend

It is said that "Mongolians grow up on horseback," and horses are inseparable from their lives. The scenery you see from the back of a horse shows you a different world. Example: trek along the river flowing out of the lake to Khatgal village near Lake Khuvsgul in northern Mongolia.

3. Drift with the wind and look down on the Mongolian land like a bird

A hot-air balloon ride takes you wherever the wind goes. Floating in a silent world beneath a sky dyed Mongolian blue, you look down on the land that stretches on forever. When the burner sends up heat, the balloon rises slowly.

4. Simply sigh at the sky full of stars

You may know that cows raised on the Mongolian steppe give milk, but you would never expect the night sky to show you a Milky Way like milk. A short drive from Ulaanbaatar, a pitch-dark steppe with no lights opens up. In summer, you might even lie down on the grass and sleep under the night sky.

5. Take a peek at nomadic life

If you actually stay at a nomad's home, you will find how busy life is with milking cows morning and evening, herding sheep and making dairy products. You cannot move like the nomad children, but you can surely lend a helping hand.

6. A horse for the winner! Race across a sea of grass

There is a marathon where the prize is a horse. Surrounded by the clean scent of herbs, you can feel the soles of your own feet in a way that horse riding never allows. On the steppe, only the clouds cast shadows. Sometimes you admire the flowers blooming on the grassland, and sometimes you dodge livestock droppings as you run.

7. Asia's greatest mystery!? Visit the birthplace of the hero

Legends about Chinggis Khaan remain throughout the country. Dadal in the northeastern Khentii Province is famous as his birthplace. The neighboring Binder is not far behind. What is the answer to Asia's greatest mystery!? The "Chinggis Khaan Birth Monument" in Dadal is shaped like a blazing fire.

8. Think back on Karakorum, an international city of ancient times

Kharkhorin (Karakorum) was once the capital of the Mongol Empire. People, goods, money and information gathered here from all over the world, and it flourished as an international city. Little remains of its former glory, but at least look at Erdene Zuu (the oldest surviving Buddhist monastery in Mongolia) and let your thoughts drift back to those days. The 102 white stupas (Buddhist towers) surrounding Erdene Zuu, together with the 6 inside the grounds, make 108.

9. Feel the breath of the ancient Turkic nomads

Mongolia still has walled cities built by the Turkic Uyghur Empire. Stone figures called "stone men" also stand in the grasslands as if keeping watch. Let your imagination run: how did the horse-riding nomads live on this Eurasian steppe long ago...? Examples: the deer stones at the Oshigiin Uvur site and the city walls of the Khar Balgas ruins.

10. Quietly step into the sacred mountains

Western Mongolia has a chain of 4,000 m class mountains, including Khuiten Peak (4,374 m), the highest in Mongolia. For Mongolians, mountains are sacred places that connect to the sky (Tengri). The sight of flowers blooming all at once is truly like paradise. When you step into the mountains, remember to show respect. Example: walk along the Potanin Glacier toward Khuiten Peak, the highest peak of the Altai Mountains.

11. Catch a glimpse of the world of dinosaurs in the Gobi

Mongolia's dinosaur fossil output is among the highest in the world, mainly from the region called the Gobi. Rare specimens have even been found of animals locked in combat and buried in the desert, turned into fossils. What will be discovered next!? Example: Bayanzag in South Gobi Province is a dinosaur fossil site.

12. Not just livestock: wild animals live here too

Driving through Mongolian nature, besides sheep and cattle you may see pikas moving from burrow to burrow and demoiselle cranes resting their wings at lakes. Alpine plants that in Japan you would only see on high mountains grow in colonies right beside you. In harsh nature, wild plants and animals are indeed alive. Examples: the Siberian capercaillie living in forest areas and the argali, the world's largest wild sheep.

13. A clash of pride! Be enchanted by the splendid Eagle Hunters' Festival

More than 100,000 Kazakhs live in western Mongolia and keep their own culture and customs. "Eagle hunting culture" is one of them. In the depths of winter they hunt using golden eagles. In Bayan-Ulgii Province, home to about 80% of them, the "Eagle Festival" is held in the first week from late September to early October. Eagle hunters with golden eagles on their arms ride their horses and compete with pride and determination.

14. Ride a reindeer in the golden taiga forest

The Darkhad Basin, west of Lake Khuvsgul, is a taiga region. The Tuvan people, who herd reindeer, live here. In autumn the trees of the taiga turn golden. Trek through the taiga on a reindeer. A world rich in forest and water awaits. Until the mid-20th century the Tuvans were hunters and gatherers who moved around with reindeer. In camps nestled among larch trees they live in cone-shaped portable dwellings called "ortz."

15. Enjoy Mongolia's winter on the frozen land

Just how cold is winter in Mongolia? In some places it reaches minus 60°C, and lakes, rivers, waterfalls... everything freezes. Frozen lakes become roads and festival venues. Even on such frozen land, people's lives go on. Examples: ice drifted onto the shore of Lake Khuvsgul, the "Ice Festival" (horse sleigh), and camel polo.

16. Rock along on a train and watch the sun sink below the horizon

It is a waste to treat transportation as just a tool. How about enjoying a rail journey on the Trans-Mongolian Railway? As the scenery changes, the passing time teaches you how vast the land is. At each border the dining car of that country is swapped in. Once in Mongolia, the train curves its way across the grassland. Just at dinner time, the sun sets on the horizon.

Visit the Filming Locations of the Drama "VIVANT"

The TBS drama series "VIVANT," which became a huge hit in 2023, was filmed in Mongolia over two and a half months. It is said to have been shot over about 1,000 km from Darkhan, Mongolia's third-largest city, in the north to the majestic nature of the Gobi in the south. All of the filming locations are spots worth visiting for travelers.

Southern Mongolia

How to get there: it cannot be reached by public transportation. You can take a domestic flight or long-distance bus to a nearby provincial capital (Mandalgovi or Dalanzadgad) and charter a four-wheel-drive vehicle from there, or charter one from Ulaanbaatar. Travel agencies and guesthouses are concentrated in Ulaanbaatar, so the latter is more common. The route includes unpaved roads, so even short distances take time. To see everything in one trip, you need 5 to 6 days.

Northern Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar and Its Surroundings